final act
Story's last part
The final act is the concluding section of a play, opera, or other staged performance—the portion where conflicts resolve and the story ends.
By extension, any concluding phase of a larger sequence: The treaty negotiations entered their final act.
A person's final act is the last thing they do before death or departure: His final act was to forgive her.
Story's final unraveling
- climaxPoint of greatest intensity
- resolutionFormal decision or determination
- epilogueConcluding literary section
- conclusionEnd or deduction
plot twist · turning point · ending · outcome · wrap-up · last chapter · character arc · dramatic irony
Post-show audience acknowledgment
- denouementStory's final unraveling
- epilogueConcluding literary section
- swan songFinal work or performance
- encoreAudience-demanded extra performance
soliloquy · monologue · curtain · ovation · bow · standing ovation · closing number · last performance
Final portion of something
- conclusionEnd or deduction
- terminationAct of ending something
- completionAct of finishing
- wrap-upConcluding summary or review
resolution · last chapter · last word · closing · sign-off · endpiece · coda · last breath
Departing salutation
- partingAct of leaving another
- valedictionFormal parting statement
- leave-takingAct of saying goodbye
- adieuFormal leave-taking
send-off · swan song · last words · departure · au revoir · bon voyage · last hurrah · farewell speech
Ultimate defensive effort
- apocalypseTotal civilizational collapse
- ArmageddonProphesied ultimate conflict
- twilightLight after sunset
- death knellOmen of ending
omega · checkmate · ultimate sacrifice · point of no return · coup de grâce · decisive moment
denouement
Story's final unraveling
- climaxPoint of greatest intensity
- resolutionFormal decision or determination
- epilogueConcluding literary section
conclusion · plot twist · turning point · ending · outcome · wrap-up · last chapter · character arc · dramatic irony · tragic flaw
curtain call
Post-show audience acknowledgment
- denouementStory's final unraveling
- epilogueConcluding literary section
- swan songFinal work or performance
encore · soliloquy · monologue · curtain · ovation · bow · standing ovation · closing number · last performance · farewell performance
ending
Final portion of something
- conclusionEnd or deduction
- terminationAct of ending something
- completionAct of finishing
wrap-up · resolution · last chapter · last word · closing · sign-off · endpiece · coda · last breath
goodbye
Departing salutation
- partingAct of leaving another
- valedictionFormal parting statement
- leave-takingAct of saying goodbye
adieu · send-off · swan song · last words · departure · au revoir · bon voyage · last hurrah · farewell speech · retirement
last stand
Ultimate defensive effort
- apocalypseTotal civilizational collapse
- ArmageddonProphesied ultimate conflict
- twilightLight after sunset
death knell · omega · checkmate · ultimate sacrifice · point of no return · coup de grâce · decisive moment
- dramatic momentsclimax, showdown, confrontation, revelation, twist
- endingsending, the end, finish, close, end
- leavingdeparture, quit, walking away, withdrawing, bail
- plotplot, storyline, subplot, climax, narrative
- swan songsswan song, last performance, farewell concert, farewell tour, farewell address
- story structureclimax, exposition, denouement, prologue, epilogue
final actexposition
Systematic explanatory presentation
setup · inciting incident · rising action · complication · introduction
final actdebut
First public appearance
first act · opening act · early days · beginning · humble beginnings
act, action, final, finally, finale, finalize, enact, finalized, finality